Last updated on July 31st, 2026
Paramount’s seen no end of controversy this year, between Skydance buying it out and its various knee-bending acts to appease the Trump administration. As such, some are looking to minimize or avoid paying for Paramount+, their streaming service.
Paramount’s major franchises
I’ve noted in the past that it feels like two-thirds of Paramount+’s main selling points are “Star Trek,” “SpongeBob”/Nickelodeon, and “South Park,” with the remaining third being its originals, CBS procedurals, and sports. Checking Paramount+ itself to confirm my sentiments, the studio apparently considers the following as its biggest franchises:
- “South Park”
- Taylor Sheridan’s various shows (“Yellowstone” spin-offs like “1923,” “Landman,” etc.)
- “NCIS”
- “Star Trek”
- The “Mission: Impossible” movies
- “RuPaul’s Drag Race”
- The “Transformers” movies
- The “Sonic the Hedgehog” movies
- “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles”
- “SpongeBob SquarePants”
- “Paw Patrol”
- “Dora the Explorer”
- “Blue’s Clues”
Note that Sheridan has just signed a deal with Comcast (i.e. NBC and Peacock), leaving Paramount+ with one less franchise-maker in the future. Still, other than “RuPaul” and the movies, everything basically falls under Nickelodeon, “CBS cop shows,” “South Park,” “Star Trek,” and “Taylor Sheridan shows,” making my “Paramount+ = Star Trek and SpongeBob” remarks seem pretty accurate.
The state of Paramount’s franchises might be one reason (among the other terrible ones) why Skydance is gunning hard to buy Warner Bros. More intellectual property to exploit, for starters. Also, while SpongeBob, CBS, and the Turtles are popular, they aren’t Bugs Bunny, HBO, or Batman. Thus, why not own TMNT and Batman?
Fortunately, Paramount still invests in physical media for their biggest franchises; as such, DVDs and Blu-rays might be able to replace Paramount+ for some people. I note some Paramount cartoons are also available on Netflix and Amazon Prime Video.
Below, I’ve listed what I consider the major Paramount-owned or -aired cartoons, i.e. what the general public thinks of animation-wise when they think of Paramount or its subsidiaries (Nickelodeon/Comedy Central/etc.), and their DVD/Blu-ray availability. My main criteria for “major” (so this list isn’t excessively long):
- It’s part of one of the aforementioned flagship franchises;
- It has to be all animated (thus I didn’t count “Blue’s Clues”);
- Paramount owns it, or it’s a third-party production that mainly or exclusively airs on a Paramount-related outlet; and/or
- It ran at least 100 episodes either by itself or combined with a spin-off.
Avatar: The Last Airbender / The Legend of Korra
“Avatar,” as well as spin-off “The Legend of Korra,” are available on DVD and Blu-ray as complete series sets.
Beavis and Butt-Head / Daria
For “Beavis and Butt-Head,” a complete series DVD set is available compiling the original 90s series, the short-lived 2011 revival, and the 1996 theatrical film “Beavis and Butt-Head Do America.” The set apparently retains all of the original music videos. As far as I can tell, there’s no sign of the 2020s revival on DVD/Blu-ray.
“Daria” is available as a complete series DVD set.
Blaze and the Monster Machines
“Blaze” is a Nick Jr. series about a talking pickup truck and his young human driver having adventures. It’s one of the longer-running series on Nick Jr., debuting in 2014 and planning to end with its ninth season. Despite this longevity, it’s only had a handful of episodes released to several DVDs.
Bubble Guppies
“Bubble Guppies” is a Nick Jr. series that ran for six seasons from 2011 to 2023 (with a several year break). Like “Blaze,” however, only a handful of episodes are on several DVDs.
Dora the Explorer
“Dora” was the most popular Nick Jr. series pre-”Paw Patrol,” running for eight seasons of 177 episodes. It’s since received several spin-offs and revivals. That said, there aren’t any season sets; instead, there’s a lengthy list of random episodes on single-disc DVD releases.
The Fairly OddParents
A complete series DVD set (consisting of all 10 seasons) is available, as well as individual DVD season sets.
The short-lived live-action spin-off “Fairly Odder” and the direct animated sequel “A New Wish,” however, aren’t available on DVD.
Hey Arnold!
The entire series is available as a complete series DVD set. “Hey Arnold!: The Movie” and “Hey Arnold!: The Jungle Movie” are also on DVD.
The Loud House / The Casagrandes
Only the first three seasons of “The Loud House” are available on DVD sets. (The show as of this writing is on its ninth season.) Its spin-off, “The Casagrandes,” only has a first season DVD set (despite running for three seasons). The made-for-Netflix/Paramount+ movies aren’t on DVD.
The live-action spin-off “The Really Loud House” ran for two seasons. Only the first season is available on DVD.
Paw Patrol
“Paw Patrol” is Nickelodeon’s most popular current series outside of “SpongeBob.” As of this writing it has 12 seasons (totaling 288 episodes), plus numerous movies.
While there isn’t a complete series set (or individual season sets as far as I can tell), there’s a metric ton of single-disc DVD releases available. (Spin-off “Rubble & Crew” also has DVDs.) A number of these are also available in cheap bundles, which would be the better buy. All of the movies are available on DVD.
Peppa Pig
Like “Paw Patrol,” there’s quite a few “Peppa Pig” DVDs available, but mostly as individual DVD releases. A number (going by Amazon) also seem to be out of print.
Rugrats
Both the original 1991 series and the 2021 reboot are available on DVD. The former has a complete series DVD set, as well as a DVD set for all of the movies. The latter has several season sets collecting the entire series.
As for spin-off “All Grown Up,” it looks like the first four seasons (out of five) are available on DVD. (The fifth season didn’t get a region 1 DVD release.) A complete series DVD set, as well as a fifth season set, were released region 4 (Latin America and Australia).
SpongeBob SquarePants
Since SpongeBob’s the animation face of Paramount, the entire series up to the 15th season is available on season DVD sets. (The movies and several specials are also on DVD/Blu-ray.) That said, I suggest buying either the first three DVD sets (seasons 1-2, seasons 3-4, and seasons 5-6) or the “First 100 Episodes” set. They’re fairly cheap, and cover the show’s best/classic episodes.
As for the spin-offs, “The Patrick Star Show” has its first season on DVD. “Kamp Koral”’s first season is also on DVD.
South Park
The entire show’s run up to late 2024 is available on DVD and Blu-ray.
Star Trek (The Animated Series / Lower Decks)
“Star Trek: The Animated Series” is available in its entirety on DVD and Blu-ray. “Lower Decks” also has a complete series Blu-ray release.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
The 2012 TMNT series is available as a complete series DVD set.
“Rise of the TMNT” has its first season on DVD, but not its second.
The first season of “Tales of the TMNT” is available on DVD and Blu-ray.
Transformers
“Transformers: Earthspark” has its first season available on DVD.
Image, from left to right: “Star Trek: Lower Decks,” “SpongeBob SquarePants,” and “South Park.” (Paramount)
